Monday, May 20, 2013

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Table of Contents
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  • 48 FAMILY DEFENCES AGAINST NATURAL CATASTROPHES OR TERRORIST ATTACK (click HERE)
  • NEW 2014 AFGHAN PRESIDENT MAY BE TALIBAN (click HERE)
  • ARGO REVEALS A CIA HERO- ANTONIO MENDEZ (click HERE)
  • DELTA FLIGHT ATTENDENT VERIFIES THAT 9/11 BONDED US TOGETHER (click HERE)
  • AFGHAN VILLAGERS KILLING TALIBAN- A GROWING TREND? (click HERE)
  • RADICALIZED AMERICAN CITIZENS MAKE FBI'S "MOST WANTED TERRORIST" LIST (click HERE)
  • PETRAEUS RESIGNATION HIGHLIGHTS RIFT BETWEEN LAW ENFORCEMENT & COUNTERINTELLIGENCE (click HERE)
  • COULD CIA TURN IMRAN KHAN INTO PAKISTANI ASSET? click HERE
  • CIA CAPTURING OR KILLING AMERICAN "CITIZENS" (click HERE)
  • PAKISTAN'S ISI EXPORTS TERRORISM (click HERE)
  • NEW AL-QAEDA MENACE TO AMERICA & WEST (click HERE)
  • HOMEGROWN RADICAL ISLAM GROWING THREAT TO AMERICA (click HERE)
  • SPYING 'FUSION CENTERS' PROTECT AMERICANS, FROM THE INSIDE-OUT (click HERE)
  • PERSONAL PREPAREDNESS FOR RADIOLOGICAL BOMB ATTACK MAY SAVE YOUR LIFE (click HERE)
  • MALALA SHOOTING PROVES TALIBAN KEEPS PAKISTAN IN DARK AGES (click HERE)
  • MALALA SHOOTING WON'T CURB PAKISTAN'S TALIBAN VIOLENCE (click HERE)
  • TERRORIST CHIEF AL ZAWAHIRI HIDING IN PAKISTAN (click HERE)
  • COMPUTER HACKERS WORRY CIA AND OSINT ANALYSTS (click HERE)
  • OSINT SHAPED U.S. INTELLIGENCE (click HERE)
  • CLASSIFIED GERMAN SPY REPORT PESSIMISTIC ON AFGHANISTAN (click HERE)
  • PAKISTAN'S MADRASSAH'S BREED TERRORISTS- TEACH HATRED TOWARD US AND WEST (click HERE)
  • OSINT- 5 GREAT COMPUTER HACKING ONLINE COURSES (click HERE)
  • AFGHAN GREEN-ON-BLUE VIOLENCE EXPOSED (click HERE)
  • RADICAL MUSLIMS AND RIGHT-WING CHRISTIANS ARE KILLING US, LITERALLY! (click HERE)
  • NORTH KOREA MAY DETONATE NUCLEAR BOMB DURING MIDEAST CHAOS (click HERE)
  • MILITARY STRIKE AGAINST IRAN PENDING (click HERE)
  • US-TALIBAN PEACE TALKS COULD WEAKEN AL QAEDA (click HERE)
  • JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF DISAGREE WITH ROMNEY'S MOCKERY OF GLOBAL WARMING (click HERE)
  • FEARLESS SEAL TEAM 6 WAR DOG USED TO GET BIN LADEN (click HERE)
  • PAKISTAN ISI INFILTRATED AFGHANISTAN SECURITY FORCES (click HERE)
  • CIA AND TURKEY ESTABLISH NO-FLY ZONE FOR SYRIAN FREE ARMY (click HERE)
  • CIA DRONE AND SPEC OPS ATTACKE TO INTENSIFY IN YEMEN (click HERE)
  • CIA GOT BIN LADEN, NOT PAKISTAN'S ISI (click HERE)
  • RUSSIAN INTELLIGENCE TO FLOOD INTERNET WITH DISINFORMATION (click HERE)
  • PAKISTAN FATA REGION TERRORIST BREEDING GROUND (click HERE)
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Saturday, May 18, 2013

CIA DRONE STRIKES KILLING AL QAEDA MILITANTS

Note: Please take the POLL "Do you favor drone strikes against Al Qaeda in Yemen?" in the upper right-hand margin.

 Well, no surprise that today Yemeni security officials reported four al Qaeda terrorists were killed by a drone strike. The  attack came around dawn in the Deyfa area in Abyan, a southern province. Drone tactical use calls for taking advantage of the low sun in the sky, which blocks their approach; i.e., they remain unseen as they approach their target from the direction of the blinding early morning sun. 

Yemeni forces conduct large-scale operations throughout Abyan, going after terrorists from major cities that they took over during the country's 2011 political turmoil. The militants have since fled to surrounding mountainous areas.

I noticed that the news media, including the Associated Press, have been reporting a dramatic rise in drone strikes in Yemen since the country's new U.S.-backed president assumed power early last year.
This is no new news. After all, the CIA will be operating in Yemen for the long haul. Last year in SANAA, Yemen a drone strike hit a vehicle carrying  militants traveling in eastern Yemen. Eight militants were killed and this marks the third such strike this week. The drone targeted a vehicle in Hadramawt in eastern Yemen. 
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The U.S. still considers the local al Qaeda branch the world's most active and has used drones in the past to go after its members. Seven other suspected militants have been killed in air strikes in the area since Tuesday. Yemen's government has intensified its campaign against militant groups, backed by U.S. advice and logistical support. Militants have carried out several attacks in retaliation. 
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I researched drone usage in Yemen last year and offer 8 observations that indicate the CIA is deeply involved in Yemen and probably will be for years to come:

1. We made a commitment. Several years ago, Gerald Feierstein, the new U.S. ambassador to Yemen, said the U.S. was  committed to support the Yemeni army and security forces in their efforts to combat the burgeoning al Qaeda force- "There is a deep concern that al Qaeda could work freely in Yemen. We understand that fighting extremism cannot be through security only and it should include economic and development reforms. This is what America is committed to directly or through the Friends of Yemen Group.”
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The Friends of Yemen Group is comprised of nations looking to help stabilize Yemen so al Qaeda and other terrorist groups will fail to develop a lasting stronghold there. They voiced their support for the security and stability of the Arabian Peninsula nation.

Feierstein went on to say, “America emphasizes its commitment to supporting the Yemeni Government and its people to overcome al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, to secure Yemeni borders, continue to train Yemeni anti-terrorist forces in addition to the provision of necessary equipments to get rid of the immediate threats posed by al Qaeda.”

At that time, Yemen’s President Saleh’s ensured that his government would take all necessary measures against terrorists and extremists and they welcomed Feierstein’s statement. Saleh added that he will support all measures mentioned by President Obama. A roughly $1.2 billion assistance bundle was being considered by Washington at that time. Feierstein said much will go to establishing a security department not to fight terrorists directly but to revitalize Yemeni forces and to battle the fight against drugs.

2. Numbers on the ground. Currently, the CIA has expanded the number of case officers collecting intelligence in Yemen. These intelligence officers, along with special ops and military intel, are brave souls. Al Qaeda in Yemen injured 10 intelligence officers, 3 seriously, on September 25, 2009 in the capital, Sana’a. The attack came just after American instructors finished a training course on fighting terrorism. 

An intelligence officer, Abdullah Ba Sharaheel, was murdered when two gunmen opened fire on him in the city of Al Mukalla. He was on his way home with his family when the Al Qaeda gunmen attacked on motorcycles and shot him.

3. The Arabian Peninsula is where al-Qaeda fled. Little wonder CIA analysts are focusing more on al Qaeda’s offshoots, in addition to the small, inner core group, which may still be housed in the tribal areas of Pakistan (Although, maybe not, after bin Laden's death). These offshoots are becoming more of a threat to America’s security. Their fears have influenced President Obama’s tactical measures in Yemen, for clandestine U.S. military strikes and armed CIA drone attacks on terrorists commenced. 

Al Qaeda has always aspired, but failed, to create a safe haven in Yemen...in the beginning, that is.  From 2001 to 2004, when Edmund J. Hull was the American ambassador to Yemen, U.S. and Yemeni counterterrorism efforts defeated al Qaeda at every turn, severely degrading its capabilities. During this period, al Qaeda mounted no successful operations against U.S. interests in Yemen and suffered the loss of its top leadership and cadres.

Unfortunately, things have changed. Their influence there is boiling over today. CIA analysts believe effective drone strikes in Pakistan have kept al Qaeda from recovering the offensive game. So, they migrated to the Arabian Peninsula and the new Yemen-based group is called Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP). They succeeded in getting the Xmas day suicide bomber aboard the plane bound for Detroit. Analysts also believe the deceased Anwar al-Awlaki helped transform the AQAP into a transnational threat. I believe that, although the CIA has 10 times more people and resources in Pakistan than it does in Yemen, the figures will soon be the same. The National Security Council met with White House officials and it was decided that the CIA will play a major operational role in Yemen.


4. We're not battling nation states anymore; we're fighting terrorist networks. And, they're sprouting up around the world faster than Chicken Delight franchises. Yemen is a pilot project...to be expanded, globally. No longer will America send in armored marine divisions. Instead, small, covert operations will expand globally where we gather intelligence, then apply it with lightening strike, in/out, inexpensive operations using spec ops.

Philip Mudd, a former senior official at the CIA and the FBI, believes that a Sept. 11-style attack has been supplanted by a proliferation of plots by AQAP and other affiliate networks. He stated, "The sheer numbers suggest that one of the plots in the United States will succeed. In the future the Pakistan-Afghanistan border region will not be the sole, or even primary, source of bombing suspects" (CTC Sentinel). Mudd's observation is another reason why I often state on this site that the U.S. should adopt Britain's MI5 model in its counterterrorism and counterintelligence efforts here at  home.

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5. Yemen needs stabilization. The reasons behind the current political and social chaos in Yemen is complex, with much historical causations that are an expression of authoritarian rule. And, al Qaeda takes advantage of chaos. Unrest continues to boil. While we were gathering OSINT intelligence a year ago, a gunmen killed a senior Yemeni intelligence officer in the main southern city of Aden, the latest in a spate of assassinations to hit the south, a security official said. Lieutenant Colonel Ali Ahmed Abd Rabbo was driving along the main coast road on Sunday evening when protesters blocked his way.

"As soon as his car stopped, gunmen opened fire, riddling the vehicle with bullets and killing the colonel". It was unclear whether the gunmen were from among the demonstrators or militants who had infiltrated the protest.

Several days later, army Colonel Naji Aitha escaped with minor injuries when militants detonated explosives outside his home, while fighting raged for the Abyan provincial capital of Zinjibar, where troops had been trying to dislodge al Qaeda linked militants.

At that time, 230 Yemeni soldiers and 50 tribal auxiliaries had been killed in the battle for Zinjibar. Today, the killings continue on both sides.

6. Anwar al-Awlaki resided there. His role in the global al Qaeda jihad was real, and just because a drone attack killed him, he was the "who's who" of jihadi attackers against the West. His DVDs and taped sermons on jihad were found in the computers of the US army officer responsible for the Fort Hood shootings, Major Nidal Hassan; underpants bomber Abdulmuttallab; and Times Square bomber Faisal Shahzad. These DVDs and taped sermons are still used today to perpetuate hatred against the West, particularly the U.S.


7. CIA expanding operations there. Al Qaeda swarmed to Yemen. So, we should, too. As I researched the AQAP, a group of construction workers in the Arabian Peninsula was hard at work constructing a secret CIA runway that would heavily ramp up drone strikes in Yemen designed to target al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. The runway and  campaign is run by the CIA, which has been increasing the use of drone strikes in Afghanistan and Pakistan. I studied a wall chart  that shows al Qaeda's presence in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), including their organizational structure, key leadership figures, official media arm, Military Division, Research and Development Division,  Shura Council, and AQAP attacks (Delta Christmas attack,  attempted assassination of Saudi Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, etc). It was a vast mosaic of networking genius, to say the least.

8. We feel justified to be in Yemen. And why not? Virtually every attempted terrorist attack against the West by Salafist jihadis since 2009 has had some association with AQAP or with the deceased and incredibly influential Islamic cleric, Anwar al-Awlaki.

AQAP is the most internationally active of the various al Qaeda branches and, as mentioned previously, has been involved in the 2009 attempted ''underpants'' bombing by Umar Farouk Abdulmuttallab, as well as the 2010 cargo bomb plot.

For these 8 reasons, I believe the CIA will continue 
increasing operations and will remain in Yemen for a long time.

Note: Please take the POLL "Do you favor continue drone strikes against Al Qaeda in Yemen?" in the upper right-hand margin.
 
Robert Morton, M.Ed., Ed.S. is a member of the Association Of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO) and writes about the online spy series "Corey Pearson- CIA Spymaster in the Caribbean." The views expressed on this site do not represent those of any organization he is a member of. Contact him on the Secure Contact Form
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N. KOREA'S MISSILE LAUNCH NO SURPRISE

6 AM, Saturday May 18, 2013: Well, here we are again! I got up early, made some coffee and turned on my computer to see that North Korea has launched short-range missiles into the Sea of Japan. Those with short memories are shocked. But, for the rest of us, we ho-hum and yawn until our coffee perks us up a bit. 

 If your response to this morning's news is shock, let me jog your short-lived memories of North Korea's history. Did you forget the power struggles they've had, between their hawks and moderates. I remember the younger son of Kim Jong II attempting to murder his older brother when Kim Jong II was ailing from a  stroke. I recall the North Korean Kang Nam freighter that illegally transported missile and/or nuclear technology on board, until the USS John McCain and a Navy P-3's tracked the Kang Nam through Chinese waters. Nor will I forget when North Korea prepared to launch a long-range missile toward Hawaii. 

As a response to the Hawaii threat, the U.S. installed a giant radar platform ship along with THAAD and other ABM systems on and around Hawaii. At that time, when Defense Secretary Robert Gates positioned missile defenses around Hawaii, he stated,“We do have some concerns if North Korea were to launch their most advanced missile to the west in the direction of Hawaii.” Gates also mentioned that the THAAD anti-ballistic missile system would be deployed.The world established strict sanctions against North Korea at the time and the despotic regime responded by threatening to detonate another nuclear bomb.

It was at that time, only several years ago, when experts mentioned that North Korea may be only several years away from being able to marry a long-range missile with a nuclear warhead. Also, do you remember when Kim Jong II threatened to retaliate against the world community's imposed sanctions? Yes, a short while ago North Korea threatened to wipe the United States off the map and we sat around wondering whether or not to take him seriously. 

Some of the comments and happenings several years ago:
  • Gates also stated, “Without telegraphing what we will do, I would just say … we are in a good position, should it become necessary, to protect Americans and American territory”.
  • A Japanese newspaper reported that North Korea might fire its most advanced ballistic missile toward Hawaii around the July 4 Independence Day holiday in the U.S.
So, refresh your memories. Our response? Beyond the ho-hum and yawning, until my coffee kicks into high gear, I take North Korea's missile launches into the Sea of Japan as another brazen slap in the face of the international community, which punished North Korea with new U.N. sanctions for conducting a second nuclear test on May 25th in defiance of a U.N. ban. Our diplomats will swing into high-gear and once again try to persuade Russia and China to shake their fingers at Kim...whatever his name is. It's also time to arm Japan, South Korea, Hawaii and other U.S.- friendly neighbors around North Korea with the most sophisticated anti-missile defensive systems in our inventory.  Then, it's up to the UN to meet and initiate the broadest, deepest sanctions against North Korea ever. 
Photo below: Taepodong-2 range from North Korean launch site
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Click Photo to review
For those readers interested, I "The National Intelligence Estimate on the Ballistic Missile Threat to the United States: Hearing Before the International Security". This resource was originally published by the Washington U.S. G.P.O. You'll enjoy the Opening Statement by Senator Thompson: "Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. Thank you for your leadership in this area. Along those lines, I noticed that it was reported today in the Washington Times that North Korea sold twelve medium-range ballistic missile engines to Iran".
 
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Robert Morton, M.Ed., Ed.S. is a member of the Association Of Former Intelligence Officerss (AFIO) and writes the online spy series "Corey Pearson- CIA Spymaster in the Caribbean." The views expressed on this site do not represent those of any organization he is a member of. Got a thought, article or comment you'd like to submit? Contact him on the Secure Contact Form
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